Not Was
by Kagami Sorciere
Summary: Xena & Gabrielle set out on the road again and find themselves adrift. Deciding to travel to a city they've not been to in ages, trouble comes calling when Xena's mind slowly starts losing time, starting with her most recent recollections. Gabrielle tries to find a cure until Xena no longer recalls even her, and finds she needs the help of people from Xena's past to save her.
1. A Swan

"Xena, we're out of water again!"

Xena sighed as she worked to pack up her side of the camp. "Alright, alright, I guess it's my turn anyway."

Gabrielle smirked as she loaded up her stuff onto her horse before Xena did. "Yeah, considering the last two…three….four times was it…?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Xena interjected, finally managing to tie up her bedroll into a sufficiently compact size.

"…that _I_ was the one who had to get it," Gabrielle helpfully continued. "So, you know, you owe me two."

Xena bounded up to Gabrielle and grabbed the water flask from her saddle. "One," she corrected, pointing the bottle at Gabrielle. The bard raised her arms in surrender. "And take care of the rest of that, would you?" Xena called behind herself as she disappeared into the brush. Gabrielle stood there, staring at Xena's half packed belongings and narrowed her eyes. "Well played, 'Warrior Princess'."

Xena hummed to herself, contented with her minor domestic victory over her friend, as she made her way down to the lake they passed last evening. Carrying a bundle of water flasks, Xena popped the top off of each in turn and, with a sigh, began to fill them up one by one. This summer had been brutal so far, and they were going through water like fish. Just as she began to fill their fifth and final flask, a rustle in the bushes captured her attention. Xena paused. Dropping the flask beside the water, she narrowed her eyes and quietly drew her sword.

She padded up silently to the source of the rustling. The rushes shook violently every now and then, causing her to pause, but finally, once close enough, she slowly spread the tall grasses and was surprised to find a swan staring back at her. The swan stood up and honked loudly at her and Xena frowned. Until, that is, she looked just between the swan's feet and spotted two, shining eggs. "Breakfast…" Xena murmured to herself, and carefully knelt down to try and sneak the eggs out from underneath the beast. The goose, realizing its future offspring were under threat, began snapping at Xena's hand viciously in defense of its eggs. Finally managing to nip Xena on the side of the hand, she pulled her arm back with a suppressed cry of pain. Xena pondered the problem and, looking at her sword, realized there was no other way.

—

"What took you so long?" Gabrielle queried, working to heat up a good fire for their breakfast. Xena threw down a dead swan and the cluster of water flasks down next to it. "I got us some breakfast."

Gabrielle looked down at the quarry in surprise as Xena walked up to her and shoved two eggs in her hand as well. "So you have!" she answered.

Xena plopped down on the ground and grinned eagerly at her traveling companion. "You know, since you were so kind in packing up the rest of my stuff for me. I thought we'd have a nice breakfast this morning."

"Ahh," Gabrielle began, starting to laugh, "but who's gonna cook all this stuff?" she said, weighing the eggs in her hand and glancing at the freshly killed bird. Xena merely grinned at her from across the fire. As the smile fell from Gabrielle's lips, she sighed. "Alright," she said, pointing the hand with the eggs at the gloating warrior. "But if I cook, you pluck and gut. Got it?"

Xena fidgeted but soon gave in. "Alright," she agreed, rising to her feet. Stepping over to her offerings she picked up the cluster of water flasks first and separated three from the bunch. "Oh, and here are yours, Gabrielle."

"Thank you!" she said, taking them and tying them to her saddle as she rummaged around for a frying pan. Xena smile in return and, taking her own bottle in hand, popped the top and began to take a sip.

"Plucking and gutting, Xena!" she heard the girl cry from across the camp as the sizzle and smell of eggs filled the air. Xena wiped her mouth and replaced the flask onto her steed. "Yes, ma'am."

—

Xena and Gabrielle had been on the road for hours. Nothing eventful had come of it.

"So where shall we go?" Gabrielle asked, looking back at her friend. Xena appeared miles away. "Xena?"

"Oh," she replied lamely, looking back at Gabrielle with a smile, "Oh, I don't know. Who've we not seen lately?"

"Not sure," Gabrielle replied thoughtfully. "Being gone for twenty-five years changed so much. Who knows who's still around…or if we wouldn't kill them with the shock at seeing us again."

Xena scoffed. "Nah, word's gotten out by now, right? I don't think we're liable to give anyone a heart attack."

They grinned, riding on in silence.

"How about Athens?" Gabrielle proposed.

"Why Athens?"

"Well….we could really catch up on some news there. I could buy new scrolls as well. We'd be able to really refresh our supplies…."

"And you could go see one of Euripides's plays," Xena finished for her with a sly smile. Gabrielle nodded cautiously trying _not_ to smile.

"Yeah…yeah we could do that…" she looked back at her friend. "If you want."

"You mean if _you_ want," Xena said kindly.

Gabrielle let out a moan and rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes, ok, busted, I want to go and see my friend's play. Xena, can we? Please?" the bard begged.

Xena clicked her tongue and became preoccupied with the treetops above them. "I dunno, Gabrielle. I mean we've so much to do- I'm sure we'll run into a village that needs saving in the next half mile. Or maybe we should just go south to Egypt instead- I hear they're in need of a girl with a chakram," she giggled.

"Xena!" Gabrielle scolded. "You _would_ pick a place as far from Athens as you could get."

Xena laughed. "Ok, ok, let's go to Egypt," she said seriously.

"Xena!"

"I mean Athens."

"Thank you, Xena!" she cried, and as the blonde turned around to smile at her friend, Xena could almost see a spark of the old Gabrielle there looking back at her and her smile turned genuine.

"Anything for you, Gabrielle."

—

Night fell, and another days' ride would take them to the outskirts of Athens.

"Another hot one today," Gabrielle said, as she considered whether or not to start their camp fire just yet.

"Uh-huh," replied Xena, taking a deep swig from her water flask.

"I'm not sure we really need the fire tonight. I mean, we've still got plenty of swan jerky…," she said, contemplating the firewood in her hands as she reluctantly began to set up a fire. Even if they didn't light it, at least it would be at the ready.

Xena sat down on her bedroll. "Delicious swan jerky," she said, and took a large bite out of some she'd taken out of a leather pouch. Gabrielle rolled her eyes and looked incredulously at her friend.

"Well, leave enough for us to get to Athens on. That way we don't have to stop to hunt," she chided, rising to her feet and dusting her hands off. Xena gave a half-hearted salute and took another swig from her flask. Gabrielle added a bit too much salt to that meat for her liking.

Xena settled down into her bed roll and watched as Gabrielle took out her last blank scroll and began to write. Listening to the gentle scraping of the quill on fresh parchment, Xena silently drifted off to sleep.

—

"XENA! Xena, wake up!"

"Huh?" Xena rolled around in her covers.

"I figure if we leave now, we'll be able to reach Athens by midnight!"

"What?" Xena said groggily, wiping a hand at her eyes. "Gabrielle, what do you mean, leave?"

Gabrielle sighed and tied her bedroll to her saddle. "Leaving for Athens, remember? Supplies? Proper news scrolls? Plays?" she said exasperatedly.

Xena propped herself up on her hands. "Gabrielle, are you kidding? We can't leave yet. Not until we've freed Eve."

Gabrielle stopped everything. "Xena?" she said tentatively, peering at her friend. "You're not sleep-talking again, are you?"

"No, I mean it," she said, rising to her feet. "You said you'd talk to the Amazon council today." Xena walked across the camp towards Gabrielle and held her shoulders in her hands. "You promise me- promise me you'll say whatever you have to to get Eve off. I don't want to fight them- Ares would like that too much."

Gabrielle turned to meet Xena's concerned gaze and shook her head lightly. "Xena, what are you talking about? Nobody has Eve."

Xena tightened her grip as her brow furrowed. "What?"

"Xena, that was _months_ ago. Nobody has Eve. Eve is free." Gabrielle tried to look up at Xena as the warrior lowered her gaze in confusion. "You do remember that, right?"

"Yes!" Xena quickly shot back defensively. "At least…at least I think so, I…" Xena's voice cracked as she moved back to stare panicked into the fire. "I don't remember at all."

* * *

 **A/N:** _Right, so, notebook still not found. Let's go on a detour instead. This will span a couple chapters and may change rating and/or character listing, so watch out for that and don't forget to share your thoughts with me along the way. Strap in and let's go!_

 _P.S.: After having written several chapters of this fic already, I've decided to update once a week, every Monday JST. Not sure how many chapters there'll be yet, but I'd say we're in for a respectable amount. So please, follow along- this story actually *will* get finished._


	2. Let's Go To Athens

Gabrielle stashed what was in her hand into the nearest saddle pocket and narrowed her eyes as she walked towards Xena. Her friend was staring deeply into the dwindling fire as dawn began to slowly creep up and light the sky a deep, penetrating navy.

"Xena…" Gabrielle called softly. She took a seat on the ground next to her and watched her in silence. " _Xena._ "

The warrior jumped.

"Hey, hey!" Gabrielle said, grabbing her by the arm in an attempt to calm her. "It's alright."

Xena looked around suspiciously. "Gabrielle…"

The blonde sat up attentively. "Yeah, I'm right here."

Xena's eyes narrowed. "How did we get here…?" she slowly growled. Gabrielle took in a deep breath and rested a hand on Xena's arm.

"Umm, well….we were riding- we've _been_ riding- for days, and decided to go to Athens and stopped here last night," she explained, trying for a light-hearted tone. She watched as Xena's fists clenched.

"No."

"No?"

"We were at the Amazon camp," Xena began slowly, "And my daughter," she continued, desperate to believe her own words, "is imprisoned by them and we vowed to get her out. Gabrielle—" Xena finished in a hurry, but her friend cut her off.

"Xena, listen to me," she said, placing her fingertips over Xena's mouth. "That was two moons ago. Maybe three? We freed Eve."

"But—" Xena began, but the fingers pressed more closely to her mouth.

"Now I don't know what's going on with you, or if this is some trick to get out of going to Athens with me…" Gabrielle sighed, and relaxed her shoulder suddenly. "Is that what this is? Xena, I told you, we don't have to go to Athens. And you don't have to come with me if you don't want to."

Xena sat there on the verge of exasperation as her friend's hand fell away from her face. "Gabrielle!" she cried, grabbing the girl by the arms again. Gabrielle stared wide-eyed at her. "This is…." she panted, trying to get her thoughts in order. "I don't know anything about Athens. All I know is that my little girl was being sentenced to death and then I wound up here."

Gabrielle blinked. "Seriously?"

Xena nodded in shock. "Yeah," she replied quietly.

"Xena, ahh…." Gabrielle put her hands to her face, trying to think. "That's not good." She then rested the back of her hand on Xena's forehead. "You don't seem to have a fever."

Xena shook her head. "And you said we agreed to this trip yesterday?"

Gabrielle nodded.

"And that Eve was freed moons ago?"

She nodded again. Xena's arms dropped as she turned back to face the fire, panic starting to take hold. Gabrielle just sat quietly, giving her friend space to think. The sky began to take on lighter shades of blue as the two sat there- one staring deep into the fire and the other staring fixedly at her friend's face. After some time, Xena spoke.

"How did we free Eve?"

"What?" Gabrielle asked, shaking herself to.

"How did we free Eve?"

"Ummm," Gabrielle began, shifting to sit on her knees. "Well, you told them that the path they were on was not the one their ancestors would have wanted and you challenged Varia to a fight to the death."

Xena's eyes widened slightly. "Go on," she asked coldly.

Gabrielle nodded. "You two fought, and you beat her…"

Xena's jaw visibly tightened.

"…but you didn't kill her," Gabrielle concluded. She watched Xena relax slightly.

"Varia then saw the error of her ways, freed Eve, Ares came by to gloat…"

"Gloat." Xena scoffed, tossing a piece of grass into the dying flames.

Gabrielle shrugged. "Well, not gloat per se. Praise."

Xena snapped her head to look incredulously at her friend.

Gabrielle gave a small smile. "He said you were good, and that you must've planned it all along."

Xena smirked.

The bard sighed and continued casually, "You said something…oh, that it was what you do, and he said he wouldn't have it any other way and then vanished." Gabrielle raised her hands to mimic the dematerialization of the god and then dropped her hands again, staring at the ground.

"Now _that_ …" Xena began, "…you could not have made up," she said, as she rose to her feet to walk towards the horses.

Gabrielle arched a brow. "Why would I make it up?"

"Because," she said, eyes hardening, "I don't remember any of it. But if you say Eve is _safe_ …"

"Xena, Eve _is_ safe. Please believe me," she said, getting up to pull at the warrior's arm. Their eyes met and Gabrielle gave her a pleading gaze. "If you want, we can go see her. We can go right now."

Xena let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and shook her head. "No. No, that's enough to convince me."

Gabrielle nodded but let her hand rest where it was. "But you say you don't remember?"

Xena shook her head. "I…I don't know, Gabrielle. Maybe I just slept funny or something," she concluded, running a hand through her mussed hair.

Gabrielle frowned. "Maybe."

Xena took a deep breath and looked at her friend. "You said we were going to Athens?"

"Yeah."

"Then let's go," she said, putting down the flap to the saddle bag.

"Xena," Gabrielle said warningly, "are you sure about that? I'm really worried—"

Xena turned and rested a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Don't be. I'm sure whatever this is," she explained, waving a hand in the air, "will pass. Let's just get on to Athens."

"Well if you're sure…" she continued timidly.

"I'm _sure_ ," the warrior concluded, and they continued to pack up camp.

When they set out on the road again, Xena was no better but no worse either. Gabrielle wasn't sure what to make of it, but since her friend seemed stable, perhaps Athens was the best place after all. "At least then I could get her to a good healer…" she mumbled quietly to herself.

"What's that?" Xena asked, riding a few paces behind her friend.

"Nothing." Gabrielle looked back at Xena who happened to be munching on something. "What are you eating?"

Xena shrugged. "Dunno." She ripped at the piece of dried meat with her teeth and took a look at it. "Tastes like swan, though."

Gabrielle smiled but then immediately halted her horse, and Xena halted in turn. Gabrielle backed up the beast to be in line with Xena's. "Um, how much of that jerky have you eaten?"

"What?"

"That jerky. Have you eaten a lot of it?" Gabrielle made a grab for the meat which Xena then possessively pulled away out of the girl's grasp with a frown. "Not a lot. Get your own."

Gabrielle sighed. "Xena, maybe it's the jerky. Did you ever think of that?"

Xena chewed slowly, staring at Gabrielle. "Well, did _you_ eat any of it?"

Gabrielle blinked. "Well yeah, I…"

"And you remember yesterday, right?"

Gabrielle nodded.

"Then it ain't the jerky," she concluded, and took another bite out of it.

Gabrielle nodded thoughtfully, putting the pieces together in her own mind. "I guess that's right," she said, sounding slightly surprised, and moved her steed forward just as Xena grabbed for her water flask.

"You made this a bit salty, though."

Gabrielle scoffed. "And how do you even know I made it, Miss Amnesia?"

"Because," Xena began with a curl of her lip, "I never over-salt my jerky."

Gabrielle laughed for the first time that day. "Fair enough."

They continued to ride on for some time in silence dotted with casual comments until the sun reached high overhead.

"Guess we better stop for lunch…" Gabrielle muttered off to the side as she turned to look behind her. Xena was asleep, perfectly erect in her saddle. "I wish I knew how she did that…." she muttered, as she got off her horse. She prodded Xena in the knee. "Hey! Wake up!"

Xena's eyes opened with a start as she looked around herself and then down at her companion.

"Good morning," Gabrielle chided sarcastically.

"Good morning," Xena said with a grin. "Did we ride all night then?"

"Pft, no, just until high sun," she replied, picking up nearby sticks and setting up a fire. Xena pulled the flint from a saddle pouch and went over to help.

"So what'll it be today?" Xena asked with a grin.

"Whatever you think you can catch," she replied, as Xena stalked off into the woods with a grin. She returned shortly with two wild rabbits which were quickly skinned, gutted, and roasting nicely on the spit.

"You know…" Xena began. Gabrielle looked up to listen intently as she went to give the spit a turn. "I think I've figured a way to get Ares and Aphrodite back on Olympus," she said with a grin. "Solve this whole emotional disconnect problem we've been running into."

Gabrielle's hand froze mid-movement. "Xena," she gasped, and darted forward towards her friend.

Xena reflexively leaned back out of her way. "What?" she replied narrowly.

Gabrielle quickly put the back of her hand onto Xena's forehead again, but this time felt her cheeks and her arms also before staring into her eyes. "What is it?" Xena asked, half laughing.

"Xena, What emotional disconnect connect problem?" she said quietly, voice filling with dread.

"You know…" Xena began slowly, frowning. "Since Ares and Aphrodite lost their godhood, the world has lost the ability to love…the balance is gone. What are you doing?" she asked, as Gabrielle tried lifting up Xena's eyelids to get a better look.

"Is it drugs?" Gabrielle asked, more to herself than to Xena.

Xena scoffed. "It's been years since I— hey!"

Gabrielle looked at Xena in disbelief before pulling herself back to the situation at hand. "Xena, you already restored Ares and Aphrodite to Olympus."

Xena blinked. "What?"

"That was about four moons or so ago."

" _What?_ "

Gabrielle stood up and covered her hands with her face as she began to pace. "Maybe…it's the Furies or something….no, we killed them." She stopped and looked at Xena. "We killed them?"

"We killed them," Xena affirmed in confusion.

Xena just sat there, watching Gabrielle blankly as she continued thinking aloud. "It's not drugs. It's not the jerky."

"We have jerky?" Xena asked suddenly. Gabrielle turned her head to glare at her friend. "Yes we have jerky, and yes I used too much salt. Again."

Xena raised her brows briefly before turning back to the fire. "Well, I told you last time…"

Gabrielle dropped her arms. "Last time…" she repeated faintly. She ran over to Xena and knelt down beside her. "Xena, when was the last time we saw Eve?"

Xena picked off a bit of the bunny and chewed it thoughtfully. "It was with the Amazons," she stated. Gabrielle gave a great sigh of relief. "When Ares was trying to attack them. He sent us that message scroll, remember?"

Gabrielle grimaced. "This isn't good."

Xena continued to chew.

"Xena, that already happened. That happened several moons ago. You don't remember Eve's trial? How she was imprisoned? Xena, are you listening to me?"

Xena just smirked as she worked off more of the meat from the steaming rabbit. "Naah, you're not getting me with that one, Gabrielle. Have to do better than that."

Gabrielle sat back stunned. She'd completely forgotten. Around the time that Ares had sent a scroll asking for their help, she and Xena had been on a pranking spree- whoever could prank the other person first had to do the foraging for a week.

"But I lost that bet…" Gabrielle murmured. "Xena….Xena!"

Gabrielle took her friend's face in her hands. Xena promptly stopped chewing. "Xena, something's happening, and no it doesn't have anything to do with that bet, I swear. Something's happening. It's like….it's like you're losing time," she whispered.

Xena's face morphed from joviality into concern. "What do you mean?"

Gabrielle, seeing she finally had Xena's attention now, nodded and thought carefully on what to say next. "Xena, this morning you woke up, and you didn't remember the day before. In fact, you'd forgotten the past couple moons. And now, somehow, this afternoon, you've forgotten even more things. And I can't figure out why. I need your help."

" _What?_ "

"Xena, please," Gabrielle gasped as panic started to slowly spread through her. "Xena help me. Help me help you. What could make you forget things like this? I thought of the food, but we've eaten the same thing. It can't, shouldn't, be drugs. I don't know what else…"

"You say I've forgotten things?" Xena asked throatily. Gabrielle nodded almost sadly. Xena frowned.

"Xena….where are we going?" Gabrielle asked, desperate for her friend to understand.

"Where?"

"Yes, where?"

There was a pause as Gabrielle watched the same expression pass over Xena's face as it did this morning.

"I can't…I don't know. Gabrielle…." Xena looked up in shock.

"Athens," Gabrielle replied, brushing Xena's face with her hand. "We're going to Athens."

Xena nodded slowly. "And maybe, in Athens," Gabrielle continued, "we'll be able to find someone who can help."

"I feel fine, though," she whispered.

"Do you?" Gabrielle asked, sniffing back emotions. Xena nodded. "Well that's at least something."

Gabrielle rose to her feet and held out a hand for her friend. "Come on then. Let's get going."

—

The rest of the day had gone smoothly enough, and after having a fairly normal dinner, the two went to bed as the embers of the fire burned on. Gabrielle lay awake, however, staring off into the thick blackness of the forest deep in thought. Athens had to have a healer who knew of such a sickness. If Athens didn't have have someone who knew….Gabrielle pushed the thought out of her head. That evening, she had discussed everything she knew with Xena and Xena had come up blank also.

" _You've done well, though, coming up with what you have so far. It's everything I would have thought of," Xena had said, praising Gabrielle for her problem-solving skills. "And if something_ should _happen to me, I know you'll do just fine on your own….just fine."_

" _Don't say that, Xena. We'll figure this out…..We always do."_

Gabrielle sighed when she heard a rustling sound behind her. She froze. Slowly reaching a hand beneath her pillow, she wrapped her fingers around one of her sais and bolted upright, only to find Xena wide awake and shakily throwing things around.

"Xena?" she asked sleepily.

"Gabrielle!" the woman cried, rushing over to her. "Gabrielle, have you seen my baby? Where is my baby? Where is Eve?" she pleaded, clutching Gabrielle hard around the shoulders, her eyes begging her friend to tell her where her child was. Gabrielle could do nothing but look back, mouth agape, before quickly pulling her wits together.

"Um, Xena," she began, shaking her head a bit. "Eve is…Eve is with Octavius. Don't you remember?"

"Octavius?" Xena echoed in a strained whisper.

"Yeah," she continued, lowering her sai. "Remember- we captured Celesta and you handed Eve off to Octavius. For safety. She's fine. We'll…" Gabrielle choked back forgotten emotions. "We'll see her again soon, right?"

Xena sat back on the ground, wide-eyed, shock slowly starting to fall away from her. "Right…" she quietly replied.

"Go to bed, Xena."

The woman nodded, looking vaguely lost as she re-spread her blankets and laid wearily down.

"It'll be alright in the morning," Gabrielle added and slowly laid back down in her own bed. Stuffing the sai back under her pillow, she clasped a hand tightly over her mouth and cried.

* * *

 **A/N:** _Heyyy, it's Sunday here in the land of the rising sun, so here's an update for you, as promised! Things are getting a little stressful, aren't they? Don't worry- it'll get worse._

 _Don't forget to review and let me know what you think! Thanks a ton to HeatherJS and the Guest Anon for their reviews of chapter one, and the three beautiful people who are following! I really appreciate the stuffing out of you._


	3. Healer‼

"Xena. Xena, get up. We're getting a head-start on Athens this morning. We're only a short way away," Gabrielle stated, patting Xena on the arm firmly as she continued to collect their things. Xena didn't budge.

"Xena. Xena!" Gabrielle patted her more firmly on the arm. A quiet laugh emanated from the pile of blankets.

"Xena?" she asked, putting down a small collection of their belongings wrapped in oil cloth. The laughing continued.

"Ohh, good one, Gabrielle," came a sleepy but jovial voice from under the covers. Gabrielle arched a brow and pulled the blanket down to reveal a perfectly relaxed Xena, lightly biting her knuckles in sleep.

"I said come on," the bard chided impatiently. After spending half the night awake and the other half on the verge of tears, she'd decided the best course of action was to get them both to the city as quickly as possible, and that was exactly what she was going to do.

Xena inhaled deeply and propped herself up on her hands. She refused to open her eyes. "Athens is thousands of miles away. Besides, I thought you wanted to experience this place more."

Gabrielle's arms went slack as she gritted her teeth. "Which place, Xena?" she asked quietly.

Xena sighed audibly as she started to hunker back down into her nest of covers. "India," she said, rolling back over. "Obviously."

The woman stood there, staring at her sleeping friend, and her fists clenched. She threw down the frying pan in her hand violently to the ground, causing a loud din as it dented itself on a rock. Xena shot up out of bed, sword in hand, wide awake. "Gabrielle!" she cried, concern etched on her face.

Gabrielle stood there in the middle of the camp trying not to fume. Xena blinked, and concluding that trouble wasn't eminent, lowered her weapon. "Was that _you_?" Xena gasped.

Gabrielle nodded sternly, looking at the ground. Xena sighed in exasperation. "Next time do NOT blame the broken pan on _me_ then!"

The warrior sat there and began rubbing the sleep out of her eyes before she returned her gaze to her friend. Xena's eyes widened suddenly as she leaned back.

"Gabri…what happened to _you?!_ " she cried. Gabrielle looked up in time to see Xena finally notice the very not India landscape around them. "And how did we—" she halted mid sentence, growing very still.

"Xena, we're not in India."

Xena rose to her feet and approached Gabrielle, gingerly reaching out a hand to feel her short hair with a look of sincere sadness. "Who did this to you?" she whispered passionately.

Gabrielle closed her eyes and took a step back, putting her arms up in front of her. "Actually," she began with a short laugh, "it was you."

" _Me?_ " Xena spat back incredulously. " _That,_ " she said pointedly, "is impossible," she concluded, grabbing at her bed roll to put away.

"Yeah, well, it's true," Gabrielle replied offhandedly. Xena scoffed. The blonde stood there, hand covering her face trying to think when a loud clang got her attention. She looked up, and saw Xena slowly looking around herself. She said nothing.

"Gabrielle?"

"Mhmm?"

"We're, uh…..we're back in Greece."

"Yep. Yes we are."

"You _knew?_ " the warrior yelled, spinning around to confront her now strangely decked-out best friend.

"Xena," Gabrielle pleaded, bounding up to the dark haired woman and taking her face in her hands. "Xena, I can't keep doing this, ok? No, we're not in India. It's been…it's been _years_ since we were in India. Something's wrong so I'm taking you to Athens, ok?"

"Something's _wrong? How?_ I—" Xena's blue eyes darted back and forth trying to comprehend the sudden shift when Gabrielle interrupted her.

"I don't know, and this has happened before and we talked it out and you didn't know either. That's why we're getting a second opinion. Ok?"

Xena nodded slowly, still lost in her own thoughts.

"Now," Gabrielle began. "I need you to help me pack up. We're not far from Athens. Can you do that?"

Xena nodded again, and Gabrielle released her. They collected their belongings in silence.

On the road, things didn't get much better. Gabrielle road out in front again and found herself constantly looking over her shoulder to check on Xena. Xena's face was stuck in something of a look of perpetual confusion. Gabrielle sighed and soon found Xena riding parallel to her, her face still carrying the same expression. Gabrielle looked at her.

"Hey," Xena said.

"Hey," she replied.

"So uh…." Xena reached up a hand and snapped one of the straps across Gabrielle's back.

"Owww!" Gabrielle hissed, reaching a hand back to the area of stinging flesh. Xena grinned. "Xena!"

"Bit of a new look for you, huh?" she said, suppressing a laugh.

"Ahh, gods, I thought we were past this…" the girl sighed with exasperation. "Yes, Xena. It is. Sure."

Xena reached up a hand to do it again, but Gabrielle swatted the offender away just in time.

"Hey, your reflexes are getting pretty good!" Xena said in surprise.

Gabrielle continued to rub her back. "Thanks."

Xena grinned again and took a swig from her water flask.

They soon reached the edge of Athens and this time both of them were taken aback.

"Wow, Gabrielle, look at that! Amazing what they can build nowadays in a matter of months!" she said, pointing at a collection of new temples and colonnades. Gabrielle's attention was equally taken by the new buildings, except that she knew it hadn't been just months, but decades, since they'd last seen the city and its architecture.

In the market, Gabrielle gave Xena a shopping list to attend to as she asked around for the best healer in town. She was given a slew of recommendations and, unsure of where to start, picked the name she'd heard the most: Apollodorus.

"Yes! Yes, come in! Come in! Right this way!" the healer cried, shoving a collection of oddities off of his examination chair as Xena and Gabrielle stepped in.

"Are you—?" the blonde began.

"Apollodorus," the man finished for her with a flourishing bow. "At your service."

Xena rolled her eyes. "Gabrielle, this is ridiculous, I do not need to see a healer. I just slept funny or something, aright?"

Gabrielle grabbed her friend gruffly by the arm and turned her back towards the healer with a push. "No, you did _not_ sleep funny, and if I told you precisely what you have forgotten, you would go into shock. Now Xena listen to me- sit down in that chair and let the healer look at you!" she exclaimed, staring angrily at her friend. Xena looked back in mild shock at such rough treatment from the peace-loving bard and wondered in the back of her mind how she got to be so strong.

Apollodorus, never one to get into the middle of a family squabble, simply grinned and motioned for the brooding warrior to take a seat. Xena looked from her friend to the man and, reluctantly, laid back in the examination chair.

"Now," he began in a practiced voice, "what seems to be the problem?"

Gabrielle closed her eyes, trying to center herself, and sighed. "My friend, ah….she's lost her memory."

"Mhmm?" the healer said, looking over a rack of his nearby tools. Xena looked on suspiciously.

"I mean, not all her memory. Just bits of recent memory. It's like she's slowly forgetting everything, and I I've tried everything and I don't know what to do."

"Of course, dear," the healer said, in a tone more patronizing than comforting. "And how much, ah, _memory_ do you reckon she's lost then?"

Gabrielle thought, resting a hand over her mouth. "Maybe, um…" her eyes widened as she looked at Xena and then at the healer, waiting expectantly for her answer. "Maybe about two and a half years or so," she concluded, nodding in the direction of her friend.

"TWO AND A HALF YEARS?" Xena cried, starting up from her seat. The healer made a move to push her back down but found his strength lacking.

He nervously looked to his irate patient's friend. "I cannot _examine_ her when she is like this. She must _relax_ ," he said smoothly.

Gabrielle moved forward to rest her hands on her friend's arm. "Xena, I know, I—"

"Two and a half _years!_ " she gasped, tears threatening to well up into her eyes.

"I know! That's why we're here, Xena. To fix this!" Gabrielle looked sternly into the wavering blue eyes of her best friend. "And in order for us to do that, you need to lie still so the doctor can examine you."

Xena pursed her lips and begged Gabrielle with her eyes to leave.

"Xena, please. It's…it's for the best," she finished, gently patting her friend on the arm.

Xena took a series of shallow breaths and, gingerly, laid back into the examination chair.

"Good!" the healer exclaimed. "Now…," he began, looking from Xena to Gabrielle. "If you don't mind, it is necessary for me to examine the patient in privacy."

Gabrielle stared blankly at him. "What?"

Apollodorus held up his hands in surrender. "Those are the rules, I'm afraid. It is a new law amongst us healers- 'Healer-Patient Confidentiality', they're calling it. I am afraid I cannot budge!"

Gabrielle sighed. "Alright," she nodded. "Xena, will you be ok here?"

"Where will you be?" the warrior asked as the healer worked behind her to assemble his tools.

Gabrielle smile. "I'll be just outside, ok? If you need anything, just yell."

Xena gave a nervous smile and nodded. "Just yell. Got it."

Gabrielle spared one last glance at the healer before stepping outside the examination room and slowly closing the door behind her. A secretary seated at a wooden table at the end of a small foyer greeted her with a timid smile as she continued reading through the various medical scrolled piled on her desk and taking notes. Gabrielle looked around herself and took a seat.

Several minutes passed and Gabrielle started to get antsy. _Maybe she's killed him by now and already escaped_ , she thought with a small smirk. When did her own thoughts get so dark?

"It shouldn't be long now!" said a small voice at the end of the room. The secretary gave her a cheery smile before burying herself back under her paperwork.

Gabrielle stood up and began to stretch. For all the time this was taking, she prayed it resulted in at least some clues as to what was happening to her friend. She stepped outside and raised her face to the sunshine, letting its raise seep into her tired and worried pores as she made her way to their horses, giving them each a comforting pat on the neck. She reached for her water flask when a sharp yell broke through the peaceful courtyard of the healer's building.

"GABRIELLE!"

Gabrielle's head snapped towards the sound and, grabbing Xena's water flask as well, ran straight into the building.

"Wait a minute, you can't go in there!" the shocked woman at the desk cried as Gabrielle kicked open the door to find her friend on the floor in tears and the healer looking as shocked as she was.

"Gabrielle! Why can't I find you? I came so close…so close…. _so close…_ " Xena wailed, tears streaming down her face.

"Xena!" she called, and ran to take her friend in her arms. "Xena, I'm right here!"

The warrior looked up. "Gabri….Gabrielle?!" she cried, taking the blonde into her arms and rocking back and forth.

"Xena, is everything alright?" she managed to choke out. "Xena, you're…it's a little tight."

Xena relinquished her hold on her beloved friend and began brushing her cheeks with her thumbs. "Oh, Gabrielle, I thought I lost you forever. I knew I didn't have to marry that _bastard_ Ares to find you!" Xena whimpered as she cradled Gabrielle in her arms again.

"You did _what?!_ " Gabrielle shouted incredulously. "Xena!"

She loosened her hold on her friend again to look at her, tears strewn across her face. "Oh Gabrielle, I'm so sorry about everything. I'm sorry about Chin, I'm sorry I couldn't save you sooner. I've been searching so long…"

Gabrielle's face winced in pain, both at the sentiment her friend was conveying and at the realization that Xena had sunk farther into her past. She lifted a hand to brush some of the tears away from the suffering woman's face.

"It's ok, Xena," she said quietly, "I forgive you. I forgave you a long time ago." Reluctantly, a few tears slid down her face also as Xena seemed to take in the words she'd been waiting to hear. Gabrielle disentangled herself from Xena and rose to her feet, starting daggers at Apollodorus.

"What have you _done_ to her?" she demanded through clenched teeth. The healer backed away.

"N-n-n-nothing, I swear!" he shouted, bumping into a tray of tools as the furious woman moved closer. He watched her fists clench tightly and did his best to keep his cool. "I was examining her, purely routine stuff I assure you, and then I turned around briefly to make some notes. When I turned back around, she was as you see before you."

Gabrielle looked down at Xena still weeping on the floor.

"I swear!" the man cried, causing a clatter as his elbow caused a collection of metal instruments to fall to the floor. He immediately bent down to collect them, desperate to be out of the lady's line of sight.

Gabrielle resisted the urge to spit and knelt down to check on her friend.

"Hey, Xena. Are you alright?"

Xena looked up timidly and beamed brightly at her through a face streaked with tears. "Yeah. I am now," she said, reaching up to brush Gabrielle's hair. "New look, huh?" she said with a grin.

Gabrielle winced and tried her best to smile back. "Uh, yeah."

"I like it," Xena said with a smile. The warrior tried to rise to her feet but failed.

"Xena? Xena, take it easy…" the bard said, taking her friend in her arms. "Just relax. Catch your breath," she said encouragingly. "Here," she offered, holding up Xena's water flask. "Drink. Once you're alright, we'll leave this place."

Xena nodded, and took a deep drink from the skin before laying back against her friend. "Where are we?" she asked wearily.

Gabrielle suppressed a sigh and closed her eyes, brushing Xena's hair from her face. "Don't worry about it. Not right now."

Xena nodded, and with a sigh, slumped against her friend, closing her eyes. Gabrielle smoothed Xena's hair with her hand and looked up at Apollodorus.

"Say I believe you," she began, glaring at the man. He nodded furiously. "What's your diagnosis?"

The man furrowed his brows and delicately turned to place one of the instruments in his hand back on the tray it came from. Gabrielle cradled Xena's head in her hands and carefully laid her on the floor as she stood to confront the healer.

"Well, this isn't an easy one to diagnose, you see…" he said, back still turned. Gabrielle stepped towards him.

"Well what is it?"

He paused, fidgeting with the edge of the table. Gabrielle raised her arms up with exasperation as the man finally turned to face her, but his gaze shifted behind her. Gabrielle frowned and, turning around, found Xena rising to her feet.

"Xena," she said slowly, trying to put an arm around her friend. Xena slapped her away, face hidden by a wall of tangled hair as Gabrielle kept trying to get her attention. Finally, the warrior rose to full height and looked the other woman in the face.

"Xena, are you al—"

Suddenly, with a wild yell, Xena grabbed the bard by the shoulders and headbutted her in the face. Gabrielle fell to the floor, out cold. The healer stood there in shock, breathing heavily as he quickly turned away hoping his presence wouldn't be noticed in the room. He reached his hand up to shakily search through the leather pouches hanging from the various nails stuck into the wall when he heard grunting and what sounded like dragging. His eyes widened as he found what he was looking for and grabbed it quickly, stuffing it into his hand.

"Excuse me!" he said, spinning around, a bit louder than was necessary. Sweat streaked his face as he began to shake the contents of the pouch out into his open hand clumsily behind his back.

The warrior woman turned her head slowly to look at him, one hand clutching the boot of her fallen friend, and the man could see bloodlust in her eyes. Whatever was going on here between those two, he'd had about enough of it.

Gingerly, he stepped over the fallen blonde and dared to approach the fuming warrior who was clearly two seconds away from ending him, too.

"I-if you don't mind," he began. "I _am_ a healer, and generally we frown upon these sorts of things happening in our 'spaces of bodily cleansing' as we like to call them..." As he rambled on, Xena's brow began to furrow both in annoyance and confusion, and her grip tightened on the boot in her hand.

"but," he continued, "If you wouldn't mind just looking here for a quick second, there's something that I—" as he held out his hand, the woman looked down. Seeing his distraction a success, he opened it and blew with all his might the powder concealed in his palm. Xena inhaled and, sensing a trap, began to swing her free arm randomly, trying to hit the obvious enemy. The healer ducked and tried to make for the door. As he reached for the knob, he felt a hand grip the back of his jacket and fling him across the room. He said through the air and smashed into his diagnosis chair and watched, disoriented, as the woman, now grasping blindly for the doorknob, reached for it, turned, and then fell flat on her face on the threshold. There was a scream from the other room as the secretary bounded up to the scene.

"Healer! Are you alright?! What's—" she gasped, covering her mouth in shock.

He waved his hand casually. "Oh," he said, taking deep breaths as he spoke. "It's fine. Just…" He slowly began to rise to his feet, dusting himself down as he did so. "Call the guards. This woman, there," he pointed, "The one with the dark hair. She must be taken to Lyssanium."

The woman gasped. "You don't mean—!"

"Yes," he nodded slowly. The secretary let out a high pitched squeal.

"Go. Now," he commanded, and with a nod, she quickly ran away, shouting loudly for the nearest guard. Apollodorus slowly leveraged himself up and into his examination seat and, with a sigh, closed his eyes.

* * *

 **A/N:** _Well, how was_ that _for a third chapter? Darker and darker we go~! As a side note, this story is the first time I've ever written for Gabrielle in earnest and you never realize what a physical actress Renee is until you have to put down in words what she would visually do in a scene. Xena's got the presence, and presence is pretty easy, but physicality…that's a lot harder. It's been a really interesting challenge so far that I hope I haven't been screwing up too badly._

 _Very, VERY special thank you to my reviewers last chapter, Silverwolf509 and HeatherJS, as well as to all the new followers. Thank you!_

 _And to you, wonderful person reading this, don't_ you _forget to leave a few of your thoughts behind as well- I love reading what you guys have to say!_


	4. Diagnosis: Madness

" _Madness,_ " Gabrielle heard as she opened her eyes. A blinding light filled her sight and she raised her arm protectively over her face.

"Oh, she's awake," she heard a woman's voice say.

"Yes, I let her rest a bit. She looked a bit tired," a familiar voice answered.

Gabrielle blinked furiously and slowly raised herself up on one arm, but her head began to swim and the world turned upside-down.

"Ah-ah, there there, now, not too quickly. That was quite a hit you took. Not quite a concussion, but close. Drink this," the familiar voice said, and a cup was pushed into her hand. She felt an arm behind her head as she was lifted up to drink. It tasted awful.

"No, drink it up. It'll help with everything."

With a grimace, she quickly downed the contents of the cup and held it out beside her where it was taken from her grasp to places unknown.

"Try again- can you open your eyes?"

Slowly, Gabrielle cautiously took a peek, and this time blurs of green meshed with the light and soon she realized she was in the garden of the healer's place. She looked to her side to see the secretary beaming back at her and the doctor icing the back of his head in front of her.

"There. All better?" he said.

"I…I think so," she said quietly, and slowly tried to prop herself up again in order to sit up. The secretary left, leaving the two of them alone.

Gabrielle held a hand above her brow in an attempt to shade her eyes from the sun.

"Um, where is Xena?" she asked, trying to reorient herself.

"Oh, that woman who put us in these states? At Lyssanium by now, I imagine," the healer said, setting the ice pack aside. Gabrielle gave him a quizzical look.

"I have the displeasure of informing you, my dear child, that my diagnosis for your friend is simply this- madness. There is no other explanation for her actions," he said, trying his best to show her some sympathy.

" _Madness?_ " she echoed, sitting up straighter. "But that's…." Gabrielle shook her head gently. "Sir, I've seen madness, and what Xena has is _not_ madness. Madness is…" she mused, thinking back to when the Furies really had driven Xena insane. Ares, too, for that matter. Callisto probably qualified as crazy as well. "Madness is random. Unstructured. Wonton action that has no rhyme or reason."

The healer nodded along with her as he swapped out the rag around his ice pack for a new one.

"Xena….Xena's got purpose with this. It isn't madness, it's _memory_. As if she experiences the moments she's about to lose before she loses them…" She trailed off and her eyes wandered, deep in thought, to a raven perched in a nearby tree as it preened its feathers. She looked back at him. "So it can't be madness."

The healer gave a low laugh. "Mhmhm, can't it?" he replied, rising to his feet. "Who is the doctor, dear?" he asked, and patted her shoulder as he passed by her towards the entrance of his work room. "Never mind, though. It's over now. Best go home," he said with a sigh. "No more to be done for her, I'm afraid."

Gabrielle held her hands to her face and let out an exasperated sigh as she jumped to her feet. The garden spun slightly, but nothing like it did before. She would be ok. "I can't just do that. Please. You have to tell me- where is Lyssanium?"

"But it's no _use,_ dear."

"I _have_ to go see my friend!" she shouted.

Silence spread over the garden as bard stared at healer and the healer stared back. He seemed to be weighing his options- try and save the girl from the trouble of witnessing her friend's further degradation or get her and her anger issues off his property?

Slowly, he nodded. "Alright, then," he acquiesced. "I'll tell you how to get there."

—

Gabrielle clutched the piece of parchment in her hand and looked at the imposing building looming before her. Behind her, just across a small field, were the outskirts of Athens.

"This isn't a hospital…..this is an insane asylum."

Her face morphed into pain as she marched through the front doors. A pair of guards stopped her from going further inside.

"No civilians past this point without permission from the head keeper," one of them bellowed. They were both tall, beefy men, but this one sported a rather neatly formed black eye that seemed to glare at her as she looked up at him. She held the parchment tighter in her hands.

"I'm here to see Xena!" she confidently shouted. The two guards looked at each other in silence before breaking off into peals of hearty laughter.

"Xena? This little thing's here to see The Harpy!" he said once he caught his breath, brushing a way a tear of amusement as he did so.

"I'm sorry, the _what?_ " she said, arching a feral brow.

The guard laughed again. "Don't get upset. See Philomenas here? She gave him that beaut of a shiner. Didn't she, Philo? Ehhhheheheheheh!" he guffawed, jabbing a pointed thumb into his companion's chest before patting him heavily on the back.

"Don't worry, though," Philomenas said, glaring at his fellow guard. "She ain't getting out of here any time soon."

"Or ever!" the other guard exclaimed, falling into another fit of laughter. Even Philomenas managed a chuckle.

Gabrielle was exasperated. "Look, is there anybody I can talk to about visiting someone in here?"

The guards quieted down enough to focus back on the small woman before them. "Yeah, Teracles over there," he said, pointing to a mousy looking man writing hurriedly in a scroll. Gabrielle gave a tight smile to the guards as she approached the man. He was so involved in his work, he never registered her presence.

"Ahh, excuse me?" she asked politely. The man jumped in his chair, nearly spilling ink everywhere.

"By the _gods_ , don't _do_ that, young lady! Do you know what this place _is_? Are you trying to kill me?" he cried, trying and failing to screw the cap back on his ink.

Gabrielle looked around herself. "How else was I supposed to get your attention?"

The man, having successfully sealed off his ink from further spillage, looked up at the woman standing before him and adjusted his spectacles. "Indeed. Right you are. My apologies," he said, rising to his feet. "I am Teracles, administrator of Lyssanium."

Gabrielle nodded with a small smile. "Gabrielle. I'm here to see Xena, who…" Teracles began nodding rapidly. "…I think," she continued with a frown, "was brought in here a little while ago."

Teracles continued to nod as he steadied his glasses on his nose. "Yes she was. But I'm afraid she's still probably sleeping, which was the last state I personally saw her in," he said rapidly.

Gabrielle tried her best to smile. "That's perfectly alright. I'd still like to see her, though."

Teracles looked over the young woman carefully. Leather. Less leather than The Harpy, as the whole place had since dubbed her. Armed. He arched a brow. "Normally I would insist you leave your weapons here, but considering who you want to see, I will make an exception."

Gabrielle forced her best smile.

"Just this once," Teracles added, with a lift of his finger.

He fumbled within the folds of his cloak and pulled out a batch of keys, beckoning for Gabrielle to follow. He unlocked a heavily fortified door ribbed in thick iron and motioned for her to step inside. He followed quickly after her and nervously locked up behind them. Teracles led the way.

"N-now these are our _less_ dangerous residents," he commented as they made their way through the complex. Arms hung through the holes allowed by the flat iron fenced over their cells and some of them made eye contact with her. She tried to give them encouraging smiles but their faces were blank.

As they continued along the corridor, the occupants seemed less and less calm. Teracles narrated their journey as if he were a tour guide at the Parthenon. The people she passed were now calling out to her- calling her by names that were not her own. Some were rocking to and fro in their cells. Others tapping lightly on the bars. The deeper and deeper they went, the less openings in the doors there were for the people inside to look out. "Purely for protection's sake," he commented, until they hit a hall containing doors with no openings but one- a narrow slit opened and closed by a strip of iron- and in front of one of these doors, Teracles had stopped.

He turned towards his guest. "Now, I understand if you've changed your mind."

Gabrielle's heart was in tatters after witnessing so much suffering. This place wasn't here to help the sick, but to lock them up and forget about them. "This place is monstrous," she whispered, staring with pain at the man in charge of it all. Teracles did his best to draw himself up to his full height.

"Well, until they come up with a better way to care for the mad and criminally insane, this will have to do," he said, lifting his chin and making sure to look down his nose at her as he did so.

Gabrielle could do nothing more but shake her head, and as she placed her hand on the door, she gave it a push. It didn't budge.

"Oh, apologies. You want to go _inside?_ "

She nodded.

"Oh no, I'm afraid that's not possible. You see, this is our high security ward. No one goes in, no one comes out," he said with a small laugh.

Gabrielle didn't think it was very clever and her eyes began burning into his. He swallowed hard.

"But you may look through the opening if you like," he added quickly, and pushed the tab aside.

Gabrielle pushed up on her toes and strained to look through the slit. Xena sat bound in a chair, leather straps holding her in place. She went back down on her feet and covered her mouth in shock. After a moment to recover herself, she pushed herself back up to look through the opening.

"Xena!" she whispered, unsure why she was whispering instead of speaking normally but continued to do so. "Xena! Xena, it's me!"

Slowly, the prisoner in the chair began to stir. "Xena!" she said again, this time in her normal voice, and the warrior's eyes flew open. Gabrielle pushed herself back slightly from the door. Xena's face was feral. She began tugging at her restraints, pulling so hard at her arms Gabrielle was sure something was going to start bleeding, become dislocated, or both.

"Xena, it's me!" she tried again.

Xena hung her head forward, seemingly in defeat. "Gabrielle…?" she murmured.

Gabrielle grinned. "Yes! Yes it's me, Xena, I'm here!"

Xena didn't move, her hair falling over her face like a shroud. Gabrielle watched as something wet seemed to fall onto the woman's leather restraints.

"Why did you do it, Gabrielle?" a faltering voice called from the cell. Gabrielle frowned.

"Do what, Xena?" she asked cautiously. She could hear whispers from her friend but could make out none of it. "I can't hear you…"

Slowly, Xena lifted her head and her eyes locked with Gabrielle's. "Why did you kill my _son?!_ " she screamed. " **Why did you kill my son!** "

Over and over again Xena screamed out the same question, rattling her restraints to the point where she swore she heard wood cracking.

"Guards!" Teracles cried. "Guards, get in here quickly! And bring the drink!"

Gabrielle backed away from the door and flinched repeatedly, tears streaming from her eyes at every agonizing wail as six guards came out of nowhere carrying a deerskin sack. Teracles opened the door and the men poured in and held the woman down. Gabrielle moved into the doorway just in time to see the sack lifted to Xena's lips and its contents poured forcefully down the womans's throat. Gabrielle backed away as Xena gargled and choked on the mixture, until finally her spasms stopped, and one by one, the guards let go.

"Did you kill her?!" Gabrielle cried, taking a step forward but terrified of seeing more than she already had.

One of the guards placed two fingers on the woman's jugular. "No, she's fine."

Gabrielle slumped against the doorway, trying and failing to suppress a sob.

"You see," Teracles said, stepping into the room now that its occupant was safely incapacitated. "this mixture merely sedates them. It cannot kill them, even if they drink it all. The more they drink, the longer they sleep." He paused. "I suppose if they drank enough to keep them asleep for days, starvation might eventually kill them, but that has yet to happen," he concluded, waving a hand dismissively.

Gabrielle just stared at Xena, stared until she saw her breathing herself.

 _She can't stay here. I won't let her stay here…_

Teracles came up beside her and patted her on the shoulder. "Trying to kill you, huh?"

Gabrielle shook her head slowly. "No, I….I didn't do…"

Teracles patted her again. "No worries- madness often drives people here to say the most outrageous things. It's a shame, though, isn't it? That we can't save them?"

He backed away from the door and motioned to the guards who quickly cleared out and returned back to wherever they originally came from.

Gabrielle turned back to look at him. "Can I…can't I go in to her? Now that she's…."

Teracles frowned, and seemed to think about the request for the moment. He sighed. "Just this once, since she is newly sedated. She's a strong one, though. Will probably take awhile until the drink has any prolonged effect on her."

Gabrielle forced a smile, and as she turned to face Xena, her lip curled in disgust. She approached the bound warrior, head hanging forlornly over her restraints, and gently brushed her hair through her fingers.

"Oh, Xena," she sighed. Carefully leaning over her friend, she kissed her softly on the head before kneeling down in front of her.

"Listen to me carefully," she whispered, pushing the tears from her cheeks. "I'm going to get you out of here! I'm not sure how yet, but just wait. I promise. I promise I won't leave you here…" Gabrielle raised a hand to her face as the tears threatened to fall again.

"Time to go," Teracles informed her, and with one final brush of her hand over the top of her friend's head, she departed.

* * *

 **A/N:** _Hello there! Last weekend I was away on a camping trip of sorts, so I apologize for lack of an update, but we're back again! I have something to ask everyone, though- what do you guys think of the summary for this story? Does it seem compelling? Something worth clicking on to find out more about? I'm wondering if the summary for this story just sucks and that's why not as many people are coming in, haha. Honestly, this is the lowest reviewed story I've written so far and I dunno if it's my crappy summary or what. Weird._

 _Anyway, THANK YOU to HeatherJS for your kind words and support as always, and to the two weird spam reviews I got- hah!_ _Also thanks to all of you who are keeping up with this story and reading it every week- it really does mean a lot._ _Until next time..._


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